Troop 131,
Let me start with a big thank you to Mrs. Devlin, Mr. Byrnett and Mrs. Ramirez, for organizing a very successful (and first ever) Troop 131 Arrow of Light and Pack visit. I also want to call out the Scout Leadership Core and all the older scouts who provided a great program and skills lessons for a very big group of Arrow of Light and Younger Scouts! Managing that many people is not an easy task!
A scout led troop that follows the patrol method works and I want to thank all of you who demonstrated this firsthand to our visitors! I think I can say with confidence that we will likely do this again.
In addition, I want to thank the big group of scouts who came out this morning for the Scouting for Food Drop pick up, see the attached photo – we filled up four cars with food! Thank you to Mrs. Ramirez and the other adults for driving and making this happen!
Here is a list of everyone that attended:
Scouts: Quinn Ziemann, Simon Macek, Thomas Grocki, John Grocki, Nathanael Baldwin, JP Reading, Alex Green, Greyson Hunt, Teddy Teixeria-Moffat, Finn Smith, Kellen Byrnett, Own Gruss, Jonathan Nguyen, James Yuda, Theo Ramirez
Adults: Meg Ziemann, Eric Reading, Jonathan Teixeria Moffat, Mark Ramirez, John Nguyen, Joe Kelly, John Yuda
We were one of the last troops to drop off our food at Alive and they said that they had record numbers and had filled all their pallets, bins and trucks and were working to find other places to store food- certainly this was a “good” problem to have. With so many people on the cusp of food insecurity it was amazing to see our greater Alexandria community step up and fill the void!
Here are the official stats: Today we turned in over 1,000 (1,040 to be exact) pounds of food to Alive, as part of their overall 19,400 pounds to serve our food-insecure Alexandrians this year! For context – last year, we collected just over 900 pounds of food.
Scouts who came out today and want to use this time (2 hours) for your rank service requirement, please see Theo, Jonathan or Thomas at the next meeting and they will sign your books.
Please don’t forget about the wreath sales, there is still time, see information below from Mr. Green, orders need to be in by Monday. Please email him with your order at fundraising@t131.org by Monday. We ask that each scout sell 3 wreaths this year!
TROOP MEETING – CAMPING PREP – 7:30
With the backing trip coming up the following weekend (November 14th) we would like to hold an abbreviated meeting for backpacking preparation (meal planning, pulling gear from the shed, review packs, etc).
All the scouts who signed up for the backing packing trip to Mud Hole Gap should attend. We also ask that the younger scouts or scouts who have never gone backpacking before, please test pack their backpack this weekend and bring it to the Monday meeting. In this way the older scouts can review it and offer suggestions. We will also make sure the backpack is adjusted well to your shoulders/back.
In general packs should not weigh more than 25% of the scout’s weight. For example, a 100-pound scout should not have more than 25 pounds on their back. Older scouts can increase this amount to 33% of this weight. We will have scales at the meeting to weigh the backs. Keeping a pack is very hard, especially when you factor in two large Nalgene bottles of water and troop gear/food that each scout will have to carry.
You can wear your Class B Uniforms and it will be a shorter meeting than normal! Scouts who are not going on the trip are welcome to attend as well.
I attached to this email and for everyone’s reference, a camping checklist as well the list of backpacking gear that was included in your welcome packet when you joined the troop.
BACKPACKING
Our next trip will be a backpacking trip! We already have 22 scouts signed up! While the Troop will camp together, there will be two options to hike in, see note below from Mr. Grocki!
Who: All Scouts
What: Backpacking!
When: Fri 14 Nov – Sun 16 Nov 2025
Where: MUDHOLE GAP – GW National Forest
Why: We’re a backpacking Troop
Cost: $10
Signups: https://forms.gle/DrD8cDQJiAHkTXa2A
We’ll leave from the church Friday afternoon and camp two nights.
This is a troop favorite with a new twist. If we have enough scouts and adult leaders we’ll be splitting into two crews, with one hike for scouts new to backpacking and one for more experienced scouts. We’ll camp Friday night together at Elizabeth Furnace Campground and then meet up again Saturday night at the Mudhole Gap campsite on the mountain. The beginner hike is around 4.5 miles with 750 feet of elevation gain. The advanced hike is 7 – 8 miles with 1,500 feet of elevation gain.
Remember there is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothing and gear- so be prepared as late fall camping is no joke! We’ll be doing a mix of packaged backpacking meals like Mountain House, quick no cook meals for the trail, and backpacking meals put together with grocery store ingredients. This will be a great chance to test our capability before we head into a heavy backpacking schedule in 2026.
Easiest way to make payment for this or other Scout events is Zelle:
Name: TreasurerT131
Email: Treasurer@T131.Org
When making payment via Zelle, please be sure to add a note telling the Treasurer what the payment is for; alternatively, you can send a separate email.
Chris Grocki
Outings Coordinator
Boy Scout Troop 131
DUES
Parents: See note below from Mrs. Devlin– Committee Chair concerning the troop Dues. Please note that the Dues are now Separate from the National Registration with the Scouting America/National Capital Area Council.
Good morning, scouts and families!
Thanks to the 2024 change in BSA’s national registration system, this message is only regarding local Troop 131 dues! (National dues are paid directly to the BSA organization. The MAJORITY of our scouts/adults will renew at the end of January, so be on the lookout for that email.)
As you’ve seen with your own budgets, costs are going up for the gear we need to put on this program. T131’s 2026 dues will be $40 per scout FOR THE YEAR. We still supplement with events like the wreath sales and car washes, but dues constitute the majority of our funding.
· This money mostly goes to pay for things like rank patches, merit badges and troop camping gear, but it also includes unit registration, summer camp registration, scout camping food, annual picnic supplies, and our annual cub scout recruiting dinner.
· It DOES NOT pay for high adventure; HA participants have separate fundraising events.
· Continuing from last year, we will still waive adult camping fees (with the exception of events that come with secondary costs like climboree/camporee, skiing or rafting). Thank you to all who continue to support our boys’ outdoor experiences!
· Troop 131 dues are only for scouts—no dues for adults.
· Pay by NOV 15 via Zelle/cash/check to Mr. Baldwin (Zelle: treasurer@t131.org). This can also be covered with past wreath sales or other credits.
Finally, we never want dues to stand in the way of the Scouting experience. Scholarships are available; please contact me or the scoutmaster to discuss.
Anastasia Devlin
Chair, Troop 131
786.457.3043
WREATH SALE
We are on the home stretch for the fundraiser! The money raised from the sale of the wreaths helps pay for much of the activities, patches and gear that we need. We have a big group of new scouts, and I hope you all will help if you can. We are looking for 80% participation this year! Mr. Green has graciously volunteered to be our fundraising chair this year, please see the updated note below from him.
Hello T131!
Thank you to all those who’ve been receiving orders or donations and knocking on doors! All this effort pays off!
Keep up the great work and remember—we now have until Monday, November 10th. At that time, all order forms should be turned in to me, or Mr. Baldwin in my absence. We will place the group order shortly afterwards.
Some points of clarification:
Sales. Knocking on doors gives you the most bang for your buck (ha—I’ll stop here). You all receive the highest profit margins this way. Don’t forget to aim for three!
Money. Regarding profits, as well as donations received, 1/2 goes to the troop for all your excellent adventures, badges, gear, and related scouting items, and the other 1/2 goes to your scout account. For example, a $50 donation received would be split 1/2 to T131 and the other 1/2 to the scout. In the event of siblings, it would be 1/2 to the troop and 1/4 to each sibling.
Materials. Clipboards and laminated flyers are not yours to keep! We had approximately 20 of each, so I’m expecting to receive the same number returned to me on or before Nov. 10th.
Merit Badge. Earn your Salesmanship Merit Badge through this fundraiser! Visit https://www.scouting.org/merit-badges/salesmanship to review requirements. Complete items #1, 3, and 7 on your own—we’ll cover the rest at a troop meeting.
I’m including one of my past emails, and another copy of the order form, just as a reminder to provide me with the right side of the form, so we can track orders (the customer keeps the left). Also attached are more order forms, if needed.
As always, please reach out to me or another troop leader if you have any questions.
Best Regards,
Mr. Green
SCHEDULE: One Month(ish) Look Ahead
Monday, November 10th – Abbreviated Troop Meeting – 7:30PM – Back packing Prep!
Friday, Nov. 14th -16th – Camping Trip- Backpacking – Mud Hole Gap – Fort Valley, VA
Monday, November 17th – Troop Meeting (BoR)(PLC) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, November 24th – No Troop Meeting -Thanksgiving Week
Monday, December 1st – Troop Meeting – ELECTIONS – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Saturday, December 6th – Scottish Walk – Old Town Alexandria
Sunday, December 7th – Day Trip – Linden to Jim and Molly Denton Shelter – Linden VA
Monday, December 8th – Troop Meeting – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, December 15th – Troop Meeting (BoR)(PLC) – 7:30 PM – Immanuel Church on the Hill
Monday, December 22nd – No Troop Meeting – Winter Break
Monday, December 29th – No Troop Meeting – Winter Break
GENERAL TROOP MEETING INFO:
For our typical meetings, please wear your full Class A Uniform! Bring your Book, Bring a headlamp! Leave your phone in your pocket! and have a good time!
Blue Cards! Did you know that your Scoutmaster can email you a blue card? Just send me, Mr. Ramirez, an email (scoutmaster@t131.org)! Note that the SCOUT must request the blue card, not the parent!
See you all at the next troop meeting.
-MR
